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So here I am, a veritable Dolly Parton, after 18 months of enforced retirement I am back in the rat race … and it feels good!
Of course it also means I don’t have as much time on my hands …but I barely even notice to be honest, that saying about asking a busy person to do stuff is so true!
I’ve been making lots of nice salads and tasty meals lately that double up as good lunchbox fillers for the following day but I am so hungry after a hard days work (ahem) that I haven’t been taking photos .. that shall ALL change from here on in!

In the meantime here is one of our favourite side dishes of the moment .. sounds unusual when you read it first but really tasty ..go on, try it!

Warm Tomato Salad (from Jamie’s 15 Minute Meals)

You Need:

500g tomatoes (I have used both cherry toms and the large ones, all taste good choice is yours)

1 lemon

1 tsp chilli powder (don’t be scared)

1 tsp mustard seeds

2 cloves of garlic

You Do:

Halve the cherry toms or chop the large toms.

Finely slice half the lemon (skin and all)

In a pan over heat: 1 tablespoon of oil (I used coconut but whatever you have is good), chilli powder, mustard seeds and sliced lemon

Squash in the garlic cloves & squeeze over the remaining juice from the lemon. Add the tomatoes and toss around for 30 seconds.

I’ve been making this salad lately its quick, tasty, contains a superfood and is a fab accompaniment to BBQ meats especially lamb.

If you follow me on twitter you’ll be aware that I made a holy show of myself recently attempting to cook quinoa. I added 1 cup grain, 2 cups water and brought to the boil for 7 min but the grain wasn’t performing as usual, that is to puff up and become somewhat translucent .. so I continued to boil it … and boil it and boil it! I was SWEATING as my guests were arriving in no time. It was only after a number of very panicked tweets asking had anyone else EVER had UNCOOKABLE quinoa did the dreadful truth dawn on me…. Wait for it …. I had picked up the wrong bag and was boiling .. SESAME SEEDS. I did not know whether to laugh or cry … I seriously considered deleting my twitter account such was public shame! But there were more pressing matters … my guests were still going to arrive so I had to burst off to the supermarket to acquire some actual quinoa (of course there was only frightfully expensive organic sort in kilo bags for sale…of course!!!!) ..everything worked out fine, the salad was gorgeous and I had a great story to tell over dinner. I did however look like I’d been dragged through a ditch backwards as I’d spent my allotted “getting ready time” rally driving back from the supermarket!

The lessons learned are as follows: 1. No matter how much you cooked sesame seeds they will not become quinoa 2. If buying your grains/seeds in bulk and inclined to be an eejet, label the bags!

Mint and Lime Quinoa Salad

Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked quinoa

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Juice from 2 limes

A handful of fresh mint leaves chopped

A handful of fresh corinader or italian parsley chopped

Sea salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

A handful of cherry or grape tomatoes, quartered

2 tablespoons diced red onion- or use 2 chopped spring onions

1 garlic clove, minced

Instructions:

Boil the quinoa in 2 cups fresh water with a pinch of salt for seven minutes

Drain, retaining as much water as possible, topping up with boiling water from the kettle. (There needs to be sufficient water to steam and not dry out, but not so much that the sieve is sitting in the water)

Steam the quinoa for a further 7 min in the sieve over the boiling water, cover with a double layer of kitchen paper and place saucepan lid on top. This will result in lovely fluffy and light quinoa.

Scoop the cooked quinoa into a bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Toss lightly with a fork until combined.

Taste test and adjust seasonings.

Cover and chill.

This salad can be eaten warm (as it was in the story above) but is also really good cold and lasts a few days in the fridge

These make a great side for BBQs or even as a lunch in its own right with a crunchy green salad!

Warm Potato Salad

Ingredients

800g baby potatoes – well cooked in salted water

2 spring onions – sliced, use it all right up to the dark green part

1/2 chilli – sliced (this is optional if you’re not a chilli lover)

handful of fresh coriander – chopped including stalks

1 clove of garlic – crushed

squeeze of lemon juice

2 dessert spoons of mayonnaise

1 dessert spoon of yoghurt – I used full fat greek as its the only decent sugar free yoghurt I can find in my local supermarket but any good creamy yoghurt will work

1/2 teaspoon wholegrain mustard – I didn’t have any today so used dijon instead and it was differnt but still good

When potatoes are cooked run a knife through them in the pot roughly, aiming to halve most but not all of them, we want a rustic look!

Chop the spring onions, chilli & coriander together add the garlic and squeeze over the lemon juice .. give this another chop together mainly to get the gorgeous smell from all the herbs then add to the hot potatoes.

Followed by the mayo, yoghurt and mustard.

Mix it all gently together, you want all the potatoes well coated but not pulverised…

The hot potatoes sort of drink in all the dressing,

Season with salt and pepper, taste, season, taste …Yum? Yes!

Personally I think they are best eaten immediately, from the pot! But are really good as a cold salad too.

This australian garlic is quite large so I just used half this clove.

Any excuse to use this massive cleaver …

Can be eaten still warm or cold.

Minty Peas with Feta

I serve this as a vegetable with dinner alot as its so simple and tasty

Ingredients

400g Frozen peas – cooked as normal

40g Feta cheese – good stuff chopped up or crumbled, don’t bother with the fake or “light” stuff you might as well be eating styrofoam for all the pleasure or nourishment you’ll get!

1 small clove of garlic – crushed

5 fresh mint leaves

When peas are cooked, strain and add in the crushed garlic immediately – stir around and pop the lid back on for a minute. This will “cook” the garlic so its not too overpowering.

Then add in the feta and mint .. Stir… Smell .. Taste and season, taste and again and .. YUM!

The feta melts and becomes a salty creamy dressing of sorts .. the mint adding a lovely summery freshness.

Check out my home grown mint!

Delish with some decent pork sausages from the bar-bie!

(Apologies for the photos, the place is very shadowy today and I am without skills..)